Bush family back in political spotlight with immigration reform

The Bush family, a longtime mainstay in Texas politics, is back in the public eye, as recent high-profile legislative action has called up the family’s track record on immigration reform.

No one in the powerhouse Republican family – which has produced presidents, governors and senators – currently holds a public office, but the Bushes have been quietly laying the groundwork for further discussion on immigration outside of Congress, according to The New York Times.

This spring, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush co-wrote a book, “Immigration Wars,” arguing that immigration reform is crucial to the nation’s future livelihood. He has spent the summer delivering speeches and promoting the book.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has been a consistent voice for immigration reform. (Getty Images)

His two sons also have developed a taste for immigration action, both as founders of political action committees that recruit and promote Hispanic political candidates. Elder son George P. Bush is a candidate for Texas land commissioner and is considered a rising Hispanic star of the Republican Party.

George P. Bush, son of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, started his political debut this year as a candidate for Texas land commissioner. (Photo: Brendan Farrington, AP)

The family’s outreach to Hispanics is both personal – Jeb Bush’s wife, Columba, is from central Mexico – and political, as both Jeb and his brother, former President George W. Bush, prioritized expanding the GOP base and promoting education policies that would benefit minorities.

George W. Bush has kept out of the spotlight since his term ended, but in July he attended a ceremony for new American citizens at his presidential library in Dallas, saying immigration is “a sign of a confident and successful nation.”

The U.S. Senate passed an immigration overhaul in June, voting to allow undocumented immigrants a chance to earn citizenship and to increase security along the U.S.-Mexico border.

But Congress’s summer recess has pushed back additional progress on the bill, and Republican leaders in the House of Representatives aren’t likely to take it up with gusto.